Former basketball players fighting in the UFC is much shorter list. Most notably, though, there’s current 9th-ranked heavyweight Walt Harris. Harris stands 6-foot-5 and played D-I at Jacksonville State before focusing on MMA. It sounds like a wise decision – Harris hasn’t lost since 2017 and he was scheduled to fight Alistair Overeem in the main event of UFC Portland until the Coronavirus altered his plans.
Former heavyweight fighter Travis Browne was a successful basketball player in San Diego. At 6-foot-7, Browne didn’t start training MMA until much later in life, but it was a smooth transition, as he didn’t lose until his 15th pro fight.
And, of course, this list wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the UFC’s current lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
